This work shows the safety of carotid artery stenting within 14 days of a stroke and, so far, this is the largest series of symptomatic patients published by an institution. The exact moment to conduct this procedure after an acute stroke is still controversial, although most publications so far have favored early endarterectomy over early angioplasty.…
The 10 most read articles of September
1- High-Sensitivity Troponins Turned All Events into Infarctions; the 4th Universal Definition Clarifies Things Myocardial infarction or myocardial injury? The Fourth Universal Definition of Myocardial Infarction (an update of the 2012 version) is here to clarify that not all cases of elevated cardiac troponin values are acute myocardial infarctions. Read more 2- A Simple…
TCT 2018 | PADN-5: Pulmonary Artery Denervation in Pre- and Post-Capillary Pulmonary Hypertension
This work included 98 patients with pre- and post-capillary pulmonary hypertension defined as mean pulmonary arterial pressures ≥25 mmHg, pulmonary capillary wedge pressures >15 mmHg, and pulmonary vascular resistance >3.0 Wood units. These subjects were randomized to pulmonary artery denervation vs. sildenafil plus sham pulmonary artery denervation. The medical treatment for heart failure was administered to all patients. The…
TCT 2018 | RADIOSOUND-HTN: Testing Different Renal Ablation Techniques and Devices
The clinical efficacy of renal endothelial sympathetic denervation using both radiofrequency and ultrasound endoscopy in the treatment of hypertension has already been proven. This is the first work comparing different techniques and technologies used to this end, which warranted its publication in Circulation. Patients with resistant hypertension were randomized 1:1:1 to: 1) radiofrequency denervation of…
TCT 2018 | IMPERIAL: First Study Comparing Drug-Eluting Stents in Patients with Femoropopliteal Disease
The IMPERIAL trial compared the safety and efficacy of a nitinol self-expanding polymer-free placlitaxel-eluting stent (Zilver PTX, Cook Medical, already approved by the US Food and Drug Administration [FDA]) and a nitinol self-expanding polymer-coating placlitaxel-eluting stent (Eluvia, Boston Scientific). This was a single-blind randomized trial in patients with symptomatic intermittent claudication (Rutherford categories 2, 3, or…
Frailty: What Happens When We Are Too Late in Critical Lower Limb Ischemia
This condition, now “trending” among patients undergoing transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR), has expanded to almost all patients we treat, always with the same outcome: the prognosis is bad, so bad that it might warrant making the difficult decision of not going forward. The association between frailty and bad prognosis is easy to see and…
HIV and Peripheral Artery Disease: Acknowledging the Association
The role of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in the development of vascular disease (specifically peripheral artery disease) remains unclear. Is the virus per se the direct cause of this disease or is it a consequence of dyslipidemia, one of the adverse effects of antiretrovirals? This study looked into the effect of HIV infection on peripheral…
Relive the SOLACI-SOCIME 2018 Congress
Over 2180 professionals from all over the world gathered in Mexico City to continue developing interventional cardiology in Latin America. Relive the event through this video! We are interested in your opinion. Please, leave your comments, thoughts, questions, etc., below. They will be most welcome.
Frailty and Critical Limb ischemia: Facing a New Challenge
Courtesy of Dr. Carlos Fava. Critical limb ischemia is the final stage of peripheral vascular disease and is associated to pain at rest, trophic lesions, and gangrene. It is also associated to amputation and reduced mobility. When it happens in frail patients, it presents a challenge. This population is on the rise and there is…
SOLACI-SOCIME 2018 | New Indications
Read articles on the main presentations of the first day of SOLACI-SOCIME 2018 Congress. See the presentation by Dr. Flavio Ribichini, entitled “New Indications”. We are interested in your opinion. Please, leave your comments, thoughts, questions, etc., below. They will be most welcome.
How to Predict Events in Order to Decide Whether to Revascularize Symptomatic Carotid Artery Stenosis
Current models are not reliable when it comes to predicting events after carotid revascularization in acute patients. Peri-procedural events seem to be particularly hard to predict. The development of models that can be externally validated is essential for the decision-making process in patients with high event rates, both during the procedure or while the case…